Teesdale u3a

In July we explored the life and works of Johannes Vermeer of Delft (1632-75).  Although only around 36 of his paintings have survived, he is regarded as one of the supreme masters, above all for his treatment of light. His paintings breathe an atmosphere of coolness, tranquillity and harmony, which has captivated art lovers across… Read more

For our June meeting, 16 of us assembled at the Bowes Museum for a close look at the newly displayed Founders’ Galleries on the first floor  Our guide to the three galleries was volunteer Sue Fielder, who gave us a concise introduction to the lives and work of John and Josephine Bowes, as now presented.… Read more

At our May meeting we looked at three masters of still life – Zurbarán, Chardin and Cézanne. The best still lifes invite us to pause, take time and contemplate their carefully disposed compositions of form and colour. In some cases, the main satisfaction is aesthetic -  enjoyment of the artist’s skill - but they can also… Read more

To mark the current exhibition of his work at the National Gallery, our April session was devoted to Joseph Wright of Derby (1734-97). Many will be familiar with his two most famous paintings, An Experiment on a Bird in the Air Pump and A Philosopher Lecturing on the Orrery, but it was rewarding to have… Read more

At our March meeting we moved on from art of the Viennese Secession to the development of German Expressionism. We began with an enthusiastic overview of the whole movement from artist and teacher Steve Carroll. The leading artists discussed were: Ernst Kirchner, Erich Hechel, Karl Schmidt-Rottlüff, Max Pechstein, Emil Nolde, Franz Marc, Wassily Kandinsky and… Read more